India and Pak NSAs Hold Secret Talks in Bangkok

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Nasir Janjua (left) and Ajit Doval, the respective NSAs of Pakistan and India, after their meeting in Bangkok on December 6, 2015. Credit: Ministry of External Affairs

New Delhi: In a sudden breakthrough, the National Security Advisors of India and Pakistan held talks in Bangkok today on a wide gamut of bilateral ties including terrorism and Jammu and Kashmir, and agreed to take forward the “constructive” engagement.

India’s NSA Ajit Doval and his Pakistani counterpart Nasir Janjua discussed peace and security, including tranquility along the LoC, and other issues. After the talks, the two sides issued a joint press statement, which said, “Pursuant to the meeting of the Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan in Paris, the NSAs, accompanied by the Foreign Secretaries, met in Bangkok today.

“Discussions were held in a candid, cordial and constructive atmosphere. They were guided by the vision of the two leaders for a peaceful stable and prosperous South Asia. Discussions covered peace and security, terrorism, Jammu and Kashmir, and other issues, including tranquility along the LoC. It was agreed to carry forward the constructive engagement.”

The meeting is a major breakthrough given the two sides had engaged in mutual blame-games earlier in September this year, resulting in cancellation of the NSA-level talks and stalling the interaction process as was agreed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif in July in the city of Ufa, Russia.

The two Prime Ministers had a brief but close chat on November 30 in Paris where they had gone to attend the first day of the ongoing UNFCCC climate summit. The Bangkok meeting also paves the way for a visit by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj to Islamabad this week to attend a multilateral conference on Afghanistan.

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Make sure this ends with this handshake and don’t go further. We don’t need terrorists acting as our friends and who will back stab us later

N Motwani

BJP which had sworn it would not follow Congress’ policy is now doing exactly what the Congress used to do, only more inefficiently – that of holding talks with Pakistan. So essentially the BJP wasted a year following its hare-brained policy of aggression at the border, killing of innocent civilians, no interaction between India and Pakistan at Saarc etc when in the end it had nothing new to offer. And now we have the External Affairs Minister herself ‘going to Pakistan’! What does Sakshi Maharaj and the likes of him inside the BJP think of themselves now? Pak agents?

NARENDRA M APTE

(1) Dialogue with Pakistan is necessary and NSA level talks
in Bangkok are a welcome departure to break the deadlock between India &
Pakistan. Here I am reminded of what Prime Minister of Pakistan had said a last
week. He said that he is ready for talks with India without setting any
pre-conditions. Even as one is heartened by Pakistan’s PM’s statement, we
cannot overlook ground realities? (2) My question is this: Would resumption of
talks between two countries be of any assistance to create atmosphere conducive
for lasting peace? (3) As per a news
report published last month, Prime Minister of Pakistan considers that people
of Kashmir must get their right of self-determination. Obviously this is
contrary to India’s position that Kashmir is part of India and no discussion
can be held on this subject. (4) The other day J & K Chief Minister said
that he still has an unrealised dream of India’s reconciliation with Pakistan
(with regard to Kashmir issue). I hope both Prime Minister of Pakistan and
J& K chief minister are aware about Pakistani politicians’ and Amy’s
obsession with the Kashmir issue. Reconciliation with Pakistan is possible only
if Pakistani political and military leadership accept reality that Kashmir is
and will remain a part of India. (5) Incidentally, I wish to say that solution
of the Kashmir issue, which PM of Pakistan is so eager to find, has no
relationship whatsoever with activities of different terrorist groups and
outfits which operate freely in Pakistan. Question one would like to ask then is
this: Why are these terrorists funded to kill innocent citizens of Pakistan?

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